| Claire disliked shopping at the bazaar. More than that she disliked having to take young Danny with her. There wasn't any other choice though. The native worker who normally looked after him was ill however and there was nothing to do except bring him. So she filled a pack with snacks and toys and loaded Danny and herself into the back of the jeep one of the workers was driving into the city. |
| The ride was long and hot and boring. Danny lay his head in his mother's lap and closed his eyes, hoping to avoid the inevitable motion sickness which plagued him. By the time they arrived in the city, he wanted to throw up. Fortunately the jeep finally stopped. |
| "I'll pick you up in three hours right here," the driver told them in Arabic, as he waited for his passengers to exit so he could finish his errands. |
| "We'll be here," Claire replied, getting Danny to sit up in his seat so she could get out first. After she slung the pack on her back, she picked up her young son and held him as the jeep shot off to wherever it was going next. Danny laid his head on his mom's shoulder. She patted his back. "Come on, Danny. We'll find something for you to buy." |
| "No, mommy," Danny complained. "Stomach hurts." |
| "I'm sorry," Claire comforted, suffer from the car ride herself. "Walking around will help." She set him on the ground and took his hand. |
| "Don't wanna walk," he complained again. |
| Claire ignored him, knowing the walking would help him as it helped her. |
| "Don't wanna walk," he said again, this time in German, one of his newer languages. |
| Claire continued on, a tight grip on Danny's hand. |
| Danny didn't have any choice but to follow, unless he just plopped on the ground and refused to move. Unfortunately he'd tried that last time and didn't like the consequences. Instead he trudged along with his mother. |
| Finally he'd had enough, consequences or no consequences. "Mommy, I don't want to walk," he yelled in French. |
| A young man turned around and observed the young child and his mother, curious about this blonde haired, blue eyes tyke, dressed in Arabic clothing and speaking French. |
| Claire looked down at her son and sighed. She knelt next to him. "I know you don't want to walk right now, Danny, but I can't carry you and these packages," she explained in English, trying to teach him her native tongue. |
| "I don't care," Danny told her Spanish, crossing his arms across his chest and stopping his foot. "I hate shopping." |
| "I'm sorry," Claire commiserated. "I wish I could help you but we have to get the shopping done." |
| Danny kept his head down, not moving but not saying anything more either. |
| The young man walked over, clearly seeing the weariness on both of their faces. "Ma'am?" |
| Claire looked up at the speaker. The young man had dark hair, brown eyes and was wearing an American Air Force uniform. "Yes, may I help you?" |
| "American?" he asked. |
| "Yes," she answered, wondering what he wanted. |
| "Actually I was wondering if I could help you," he told her. "I noticed you were having trouble with all your packages and a very tired young man." |
| Danny stared at him, wondering if he was a good guy or a bad guy. He looked nice enough, but he didn't like anybody messing with his mom. "I'm not tired," he stated in Russian, wanting to show off a little, figuring the man wouldn't understand him and leave them alone. |
| The man knelt down next to the boy. "I can see you're not tired. I'm sorry I said that," he told Danny in passable Russian. "My name is Captain Jack." He held out his hand, but the boy didn't move. |
| However Claire did shake his hand. "My name's Claire Jackson and this stubborn child is my son, Danny, Captain O'Neill," she said, reading his name off his uniform. |
| "You can call me Captain Jack if you want," he told her. "I'm stationed here for a while. Decided to spend my free day shopping. Your son looks a lot like my son at home." |
| "I'm sure you must miss him," Claire consoled him. "Have you been away long?" |
| "A few months," Jack told her. "I'm schedule to return to the states soon." He didn't mention the mission he had to complete before his return. "I'd be happy to either carry your bags or your son for you while you finish shopping," he offered. |
| "That would be very much appreciated," Claire replied, sighing in relief. It wasn't only her son who was tired. |
| "That would not be appreciated!" Danny yelled in Arabic. |
| "Danny!" Claire scolded. "He is offering to help us and you were the one who said you were tired. |
| "I didn't say I was tired," Danny pouted. "I said I didn't want to walk. There's a difference." |
| "If you don't want to walk, Danny," Jack told him in Arabic, "I'd be happy to carry you." |
| Danny looked up in surprise. Maybe the guy knew Russian, but he didn't think he'd know Arabic also. |
| "Your choice, Danny," Claire told him. "If you don't want to walk, Captain Jack here has offered to carry you." |
| Eyeing him warily, Danny asked, "How do I know you're a good guy?" |
| "Because I'm an American in the military?" Jack offered. |
| "Daddy doesn't like the military," Danny told him in English. "He says they get in the way." |
| "Danny!" Claire scolded again. |
| "It's okay, ma'am," Jack assured her. "He has a right to make sure I'm safe." He turned back to the boy. "Do I look like a good guy?" |
| Danny nodded. |
| "Do I look strong?" |
| Danny nodded again. |
| "Strong enough to carry you?" |
| Danny nodded once more. |
| Jack held out his arms. "Willing to go for a ride?" |
| "You won't leave my mom's side?" |
| "Nope, we'll stay right with her." |
| "Okay," Danny agreed. He lifted his arms to be picked up. |
| Jack lifted him up and grabbed a few of the packages along with the child. |
| "You don't have to get the bags, too," Claire insisted. "You've got enough to handle with him." |
| "Don't worry, ma'am," Jack responded. "I can get all of it." He shifted Danny onto his hip and stood up straight. "Where to?" |
